1. Field
The present invention relates to an accelerator operating device provided on the handle of a two-wheeled vehicle and the like, and more particularly relates to an accelerator operating device employing a drive-by-wire system.
2. Description of the Related Art
A well-known conventional accelerator operating device includes: a dual partitioned case installed on the handlebar; a throttle grip installed to rotate freely on the end of the handlebar; a gear mechanism containing a drive gear and a detection gear that are included in the case and rotate around the handlebar; a tube guide that is arranged to freely rotate around the handlebar and transmits the rotation of the throttle grip to the drive gear; a return spring that biases the drive gear to rotate in one direction; a throttle degree opening sensor that detects the rotational angle of the detection gear included in the gear mechanism; a ring-shaped plate case arranged in the case and around the handlebar; a ring-shaped friction plate fit in the plate case; and a plurality of coil springs that are fit in the plate case and biases the friction plate toward the thrust end surface of the drive gear (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2003-252274).
In this accelerator operating device, the degree of throttle opening is detected by the throttle degree opening sensor based on rotation of the drive gear and the detection gear corresponding to the rotation of the throttle grip, and the plurality of coil springs and friction plate generate a fixed rotational load (operating load) and cancel an unpleasant feeling during operation.
Nonetheless, the above accelerator operating device requires a plurality of coil springs to apply pressure on the friction plate as the load generation mechanism that generates load on the rotational operating force, and therefore, the structure is complicated, and tasks such as assembly and maintenance are laborious.
Moreover, if sticking or the like occurs between the friction plate and the drive gear, there is the risk that the throttle grip will not return to the rest position (throttle closed angle position).
Further, regarding rotational operating force of the throttle grip, even if a constant frictional force (load) can be generated in addition to the counterforce of the return spring, the hysteresis characteristics of the rotational operating force cannot be changed by increasing or decreasing the frictional force (load) corresponding to the increase of the opening angle of the throttle grip.